Rio 2
Rio 2 is a computer animated film produced by Blue Sky Studios and directed by Carlos Saldanha, with 20th Century Fox as its distributor. It was released on March 28, 2014 in Brazil and April 11, 2014 worldwide.[http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/rio_2/ Rio 2 (2014)] The film received mixed reviews, but was a box office success, grossing $500 million worldwide on it's $103 million budget. Plot The film starts with an enormous celebration going on across Rio de Janeiro. In the bird community of the city, we catch up with blue macaws Blu (Jesse Eisenberg) and Jewel (Anne Hathaway), now married with three kids. They dance and sing together with their pals Raphael (George Lopez), Pedro (will.i.am), and Nico (Jamie Foxx). Blu asks Raphael where the kids are. Raphael says he left them with the bulldog Luiz (Tracy Morgan). Luiz says he left them with the little bird Tiny (Kate Micucci). The kids - Carla (Rachel Crow), Bia (Amandla Stenberg), and Tiago (Pierce Gagnon) - tied Tiny up to a bunch of fireworks. Their parents come flying in to prevent them from lighting them when Blu grabs the match and scolds them. However, he burns himself and causes the fireworks to light up. He gets Tiny out but gets himself caught, and is launched into the sky as the fireworks erupt in an epic display, for all of Rio and the birds to see. Blu's owner Linda (Leslie Mann) and her husband/fellow bird lover Tulio (Rodrigo Santoro) are sailing on a boat in the jungle to bring a plump red bird back to its habitat with its family. They don't notice the waterfalls up ahead and they fall over the edge, but they're both okay. A bird flies overhead and drops its feather. Tulio grabs it and inspects it. It's the feather of a blue macaw. News gets out that Linda and Tulio discovered more blue macaws out there. They decide to travel to the Amazon jungle to find this flock. Jewel wants to travel there as well since she feels Blu has domesticated their kids too much, and they must stay in touch with their bird nature. Nico and Pedro wanna join so they can scout for exotic talent for their little Carnival show. The only person they have so far is Raphael's wife Eva (Bebel Gilberto), who is an awful singer. Meanwhile, a sinister logging tycoon known only as Big Boss (Miguel Ferrer) gets wind of Linda and Tulio's mission, fearing they will interfere with his plans. Blu guides himself, along with his family and friends, to the Amazon with human equipment, like a GPS. They keep getting lost until they fly together as a group. On the ground, the evil cockatoo Nigel (Jemaine Clement) is now a flightless performing bird in a market, along with Gabi the poisonous tree frog (Kristin Chenoweth) and Charlie the anteater. Nigel is forced to be a fortune telling bird, while Gabi swoons over him, helplessly in love. Nigel spots Blu and his family flying up ahead, driving him to seek revenge against the bird that cost him his flight. He causes a fiasco at the market, releasing Gabi and Charlie. He rides on Charlie's back with Gabi to chase after the birds. Nigel, Gabi, and Charlie sneak on board a boat on their trip to catch Blu. Nigel falls asleep, and Gabi sings the song "Poisonous Love" to express her feelings for Nigel, and the fact that she can't touch him because she is poisonous. When he wakes up, they spot Blu and his family on the boat. Nigel goes to make his killing move, when Charlie gets stuck in a bottle while trying to eat some ants. He pulls it off and hits an alarm, causing a commotion on the boat that foils Nigel's plan Big Boss also comes into the Amazon jungle to meet with his associates. He orders them to get rid of Linda and Tulio, for they are searching for macaws in an area that he plans to cut down. Upon arriving in the jungle, Blu is snatched up by another bird, leading him and his family and friends to find the whole flock of blue macaws. They're led by Eduardo (Andy Garcia), Jewel's father. They have a tearful reunion after being separated by loggers. This caused Eduardo to have a distrust for humans. He greets Blu and his grandchildren. Also joining the party is Jewel's old childhood friend Roberto (Bruno Mars), who sings a smooth ballad to welcome Jewel back to her home, along with Jewel's Aunt Mimi (Rita Moreno). Roberto lets Blu and his family stay inside a tree that he remodeled himself. Although Blu is not comfortable with this new setting, he can see that Jewel is happy. Eduardo decides to take Blu around the jungle in what he tells Jewel is sightseeing, when it is really a series of tests for Blu to prove his worth in the jungle. He gets hurt more than once, and appears to pale in comparison to Roberto, who always receives praise from Eduardo. They also encounter the rival tribe of scarlet macaws, led by Felipe (Philip Lawrence). They taunt and antagonize Eduardo for trying to help someone like Blu. Blu only ruffles up Eduardo's feathers by trying to utilize Linda's equipment in the wild. Eduardo orders Roberto to keep an eye on Blu, fearing he is in league with the loggers. Elsewhere, Nico and Pedro continue their talent search with Raphael. Carla joins them, having a knack for performing and an interest in music as well. Most of the people that come to audition for the show have exceptional talent, but they keep eating each other alive...literally. However, they get a surprise visit from Nigel (in disguise), who performs with Gabi a very entertaining rendition of "I Will Survive". At the same time, Linda and Tulio are discovered by Big Boss and his men after the logger's monkeys searched for them. The villains tie Linda and Tulio together to a tree as they go off to cut more down. Blu goes to get a Brazilian nut for Jewel, since they're her favorite. The loggers' monkeys trick Blu into flying to the scarlet macaws' territory. He tries to take the Brazilian nut, unaware that it belongs to them. He causes the scarlet macaws to challenge the blue macaws to a game that is the bird equivalent of soccer. After not letting Blu join the game, Eduardo reluctantly lets him join when he sees that most of his players are getting taken out. Although Blu appears to be skilled, he ends up scoring the winning goal for the opposite team. Eduardo berates Blu for his failure, leading Blu to feel unwanted and unneeded in this place. He argues with Jewel, who tells him to choose where he prefers to stay. Feeling conflicted, Blu flies somewhere away from the tribe, causing Jewel to think he's abandoning them. Instead, he comes across Linda's campsite to say goodbye, knowing he belongs with Jewel in the place where she feels happy. Blu then senses that something is not right. Before he can warn the tribe he is discovered by Roberto (Who had followed him) and believes he's teaming up with the humans, and concludes Eduardo was right and calls him a "traitor." Blu asks him what he knows about humans, and he answers he knows well, and nervously gestures while talking. He says humans trap you and then feed you crackers, insinuating he has experienced this. A huge logging harvester surprises them both, Blu gets out of the way, but Roberto, upon seeing a human, freezes in the machines' path. Blu saves him in time, but he starts panicking and screaming. Blu slaps him in the face and tells him to go back and warn the tribe about the loggers. Blu meanwhile finds Linda and Tulio. Blu manages to free them from a tree before coming across the loggers and their destruction of the Jungle. Blu later returns to the tribe to hear that Jewel won't leave without him, and he rubs his beak with her's as they reunite. Blu then convinces the entire tribe that his knowledge of humans is, for once, useful to them, and together they decide to fight. The loggers start to make their way into the deeper part of the jungle. Linda and Tulio stand in front of the bulldozers to stop them, but what makes the villains stop is seeing the entire flock of blue macaws sitting in the trees, looking very unhappy. The scarlet macaws call a truce to help save the forest, along with the other animals. Everybody swoops in to attack the loggers and frighten them away, but Big Boss shows no fear to the animals. He drives a vehicle into the forest, but Linda holds him off in a bulldozer that she commandeers. Eduardo is caught in the middle of them, but he is rescued by Tulio. Big Boss starts to set off some dynamite strapped in the trees. Blu spots them and pulls them off, with Nigel following. Blu grabs the dynamite and flies high up with them, and Nigel grabs on. The dynamite is flung into the air, and Nigel then jumps onto Blu, revealing himself to his nemesis. An explosion rings out as the dynamite blows up, throwing the birds into the trees. They fight while tied together, giving Gabi a chance to take a toothpick swabbed with her poison to shoot at Blu. She accidentally hits Nigel, who thinks he is going to die. He does an incredibly theatrical death, with Gabi swallowing a drop of her poison to be with Nigel. Bia points out that Gabi isn't poisonous, and that it's a common misconception. Overjoyed at this revelation, Gabi grabs Nigel so they can be together, to his dismay. Meanwhile, Big Boss is swallowed whole by a snake. The jungle is saved, and Eduardo accepts Blu as part of the tribe. Nigel and Gabi are sent to Rio to be studied. Charlie ditches them. Blu decides to stay in the Amazon with Jewel and his family, but they agree to visit Rio during the summer seasons. The film ends with the animals putting on Nico and Pedro's Carnival show, with Carla joining in the celebration. Cast Animals *Jesse Eisenberg as Blu *Anne Hathaway as Jewel *Will.i.amwill.i.am as Pedro *Jamie FoxxJamie Foxx as Nico *Jemaine Clement as Nigel *George Lopez as Rafael *Tracy Morgan as Luiz *Kristin Chenoweth as Gabi *Amandla Stenberg as Bia *Pierce Gagnon as Tiago *Rachel Crow as Carla *Andy García as Eduardo *Bruno Mars as Roberto *Rita Moreno as Mimi *Philip Lawrence as Felipe *Hope Levy as Female Macaws Humans *Leslie Mann as Linda Gunderson *Rodrigo Santoro as Tulio Monterio *Jake T. Austin as Fernando *Miguel Ferrer as Big Boss *Sergio Mendes as Carnival Barker Trivia *''Rio'' is the second Blue Sky Studios film to become a franchise after Ice Age. *The second film from Blue Sky Studios, after Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (3-D version only), to have an altered version of the 20th Century Fox logo. *Unlike the first Rio, this is the sixth Blue Sky Studios film not to have the opening credits, after the Ice Age ''franchise and ''Epic. * Just like the first Rio, this is the third Blue Sky Studios film to feature humans (and counting Epic). *This is the third Blue Sky Studios film to not have Jason Fricchione in it, the first being the Ice Age (2002 film) and Robots. *This is the second film from Blue Sky Studios not to have a soundtrack by Varèse Sarabande. *''Rio 2'' is the fourth Blue Sky Studios film to have humans, after Ice Age, Rio and Epic. *The third Blue Sky Studios film to be rated G by the MPAA after Horton Hears a Who! and Rio. *This is the second Blue Sky Studios film to have Carlos Saldanha, Mandela Scarpa Saldanha, and Sofia Scarpa Saldanha together as cast members, with the first being Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. *The some characters from the first film did not appear including Mauro. *In the first film, Fernando's voice was higher, while in this film, his voice was a little deeper, suggesting that he had gone through puberty between both films. *Jeff Garcia, who voiced Kipo and Perl respectively, had voiced a macaw that carried a warning to Roberto. *Released the same day as 300: Rise of an Empire, also featuring Rodrigo Santoro. Production Development The first news of a sequel was revealed by Sérgio Mendes in an interview in which he said a sequel was being considered by Blue Sky Studios and 20th Century Fox after Saldanha proposed his idea of it tying into the 2014 FIFA World Cup[http://my.entertainment.yahoo.com/news/sergio-mendes-says-rio-sequel-likely-155007113.html Sérgio Mendes says Rio sequel likely][http://www.vulture.com/2012/01/rio-sequel-brazil-world-cup.html Director Carlos Saldanha wants Rio 2 to tie into Brazil's 2014 FIFA World Cup][http://blogamole.tr3s.com/2012/01/26/sergio-mendes-stirs-up-talk-about-rio-sequel/ Sérgio Mendes stirs up talk about Rio sequel]. On April 7, 2012, Deadline.com reported that Jesse Eisenberg has signed up to voice Blu once againJesse Eisenberg is leaving ICM for CAA. Sérgio Mendes will once again being creating new music for Rio 2, due to his Oscar nomination for his music in the original Rio[http://www.hitfix.com/articles/sequel-to-oscar-nominated-animated-hit-rio-in-the-works Sequel to Oscar-Nominated animated hit Rio in the works]. Saldanha revealed that no deal for a script or deals have been made with studios about the film as of yet[http://www.darkhorizons.com/news/22896/-rio-sequel-readying-for-2014 Rio sequel readying for 2014][http://www.toonzone.net/news/articles/40122/rio-sequel-in-the-works Sequel to 2009's Rio in the works]. According to one of the producers, the movie has entered the story board stage, with two scenes involving Blu and Jewel's children having been mapped out, revealing that two of the chicks are male and one is female and that the opening scene invovles them, with the two males being able to fly, but the female not being able to. Apparently this is due to her embarrassing herself while flying. A promo poster, using stock images from the poster for Rio, was released on June 12th, 2012 at Licensing Expo 2012.Licensing Expo 2012 Reveals RIO 2, Close Looks at Superman and Jor-El’s Costumes from MAN OF STEEL, and MoreMan of Steel, Iron Man 3, RoboCop and More Licensing Expo 2012 Photos! On November 28, 2012, Don Rhymer, the screenwriter of the first film, died after a battle with cancer. Release , who voices Tulio, and the soundtrack's producer Sérgio Mendes at the film's press event.]] The film was released to international theaters on March 20, 2014. The film's premiere was held in Miami, Florida on March 21, 2014. The film was released in the United States on April 11, 2014.http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2357291/releaseinfo?ref_=tt_dt_dt Marketing Under the supervision of 20th Century Fox—with director Carlos Saldanha and music composer John Powell—the film's natural hometown of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil used the film as a tie-in promotion for the 2014 New Year's Eve celebration at Copacabana Beach. Three of four Angry Birds Rio episodes — all visually tied to Rio 2 — have been released. The first, "Rocket Rumble", was released in December 2013, the second, "High Dive", in February 2014, and the third, "Blossom River", in April 2014. In April 2014, Kohl's began selling Blu, Gabi, and Luiz plush toys as a part of their Kohl’s Cares merchandise program. Home media Rio 2 was released on Blu-ray (2D and 3D) and DVD on July 15, 2014. The Target exclusive comes with a Blu plush toy. A limited sing-along edition of the film was released on Blu-ray and DVD on November 4, 2014. Reception Critical response Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 48% based on reviews from 107 critics, with an average rating of 5.4/10. The site's consensus reads: "Like most sequels, Rio 2 takes its predecessor's basic template and tries to make it bigger—which means it's even busier, more colorful, and ultimately more exhausting for viewers outside the youthful target demographic." Another review aggregation website, Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 top reviews from mainstream critics, calculated a score of 49 out of 100 based on 34 reviews, which indicates mixed or average reviews. Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale, the same grade earned by its predecessor. Mark Adams of Screen Daily said, "As a delightfully bright and breezy bit of 3D animated entertainment Rio 2 hits the sweet spot, and will no doubt be a box office hit with its blend of good-natured jungle adventure, songs and gags. The only frustrating thing is that it feels very much like a by-the-numbers sequel, lacking the verve, ebullience and left-field humour that made 2011’s Rio such a surprise hit." Justin Lowe of The Hollywood Reporter said, "This rumble in the jungle adds a colorful cast of rain-forest creatures to the franchise's infectious sense of frivolity." Justin Chang of Variety said, "Domestic and ecological dramas abound in this bright, noisy, overstuffed sequel to Fox's 2011 surprise hit." Tom Huddleston of Time Out gave the film three out of five stars, saying "There are problems here ... but the characterisation is feisty and memorable, the song-and-dance sequences intricate and colourful, and it'll charm the socks off little people." Kyle Smith of the New York Post gave the film two and a half stars out of four, saying "Rio 2 is not what I would call Amazon prime, but it's got enough silly songs and daffy critters to keep the little ones happy." Claudia Puig of USA Today gave the film two out of four stars, saying "Rio 2 teems with colorful animated splendor and elaborate musical numbers, but its rambling, hectic, if good-hearted, story is for the birds." Richard Corliss of Time gave the film a positive review, saying "Even when it's coarse and calculating, this is an eager entertainment machine that will keep the kids satisfied. Just don't tell them that the Rio movies are musical comedies about an avian genocide." Elizabeth Weitzman of the New York Daily News gave the film three out of five stars, saying "We're grading on a sliding scale here. But if Rio 2 is hardly Pixar quality, it's certainly better than the average animated sequel." Peter Hartlaub of the San Francisco Chronicle gave the film two out of four stars, saying "It's like the last Hobbit movie - so much time passes between side plots that you have to jog the memory when a minor character appears again. Who's that toucan again? Is he a bad guy?" Bill Goodykoontz of The Arizona Republic gave the film three out of four stars, saying "An agreeable song-and-dance movie, a laugh here, a laugh there, pleasant but overly busy, for seemingly no real reason other than to throw a few more set pieces at the wall to see what sticks." Jessica Herndon of the Associated Press gave the film three out of four stars, saying "With so much going on, it's a wonder this kids' movie is only five minutes longer than the original. But for the music and brilliantly picturesque look, it's worth the 3-D ticket." Stephanie Merry of The Washington Post gave the film two out of four stars, saying "All in all, though, the movie feels at once too busy and too derivative. That's no easy feat, but it's also one sequel-makers probably shouldn't aspire to." Bruce Demara of the Toronto Star gave the film two and a half stars out of four, saying "Those who enjoyed the adventures of Blu and Jewel and company in the first Rio are going to find the sequel an equally pleasing diversion." Tom Russo of The Boston Globe gave the film two out of four stars, saying "The story flows, but not always freely, thanks to its manufactured feel." Jeannette Catsoulis of The New York Times gave the film a negative review, saying "The cinematic equivalent of attack by kaleidoscope, Rio 2 sucks you in and whirls you around before spitting you out, exhausted." Betsy Sharkey of the Los Angeles Times gave the film a negative review, saying "Wonderfully animated and well-voiced, Rio 2 is nevertheless too much. Too much plot, too many issues, too many characters." Bill Zwecker of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film three out of four stars, saying "It's as good as the first one and sure to please both the kiddies and adults with its two-tiered humor." Tirdad Derakhshani of The Philadelphia Inquirer gave the film two out of four stars, saying "It'll keep the kids content for a couple of hours, though it's likely to bore the grown-ups." Liam Lacey of The Globe and Mail gave the film three out of four stars, saying "Rio 2 (like Fox’s Ice Age series) relies on derivative plotting and slapstick visual gags, in contrast to Pixar’s more cerebral originality. Where the film excels though, in an even more pronounced way than the first film, is in the choreographed animation for the musical numbers." Alonso Duralde of The Wrap gave the film a negative review, saying "The musical moments, on the whole, stand out as the highlights of the film; Rio 2 becomes watchable when the flat characters shut up and sing." Rafer Guzman of Newsday gave the film one and a half stars out of four, saying "The movie has one goal: to amuse the most children with the least amount of effort." Steve Persall of the Tampa Bay Times gave the film a B+, saying "Like its peppy predecessor, Rio 2 doesn't look or sound like other animated licenses to print money. That alone is reason enough to appreciate it." Kevin McFarland of The A.V. Club gave the film a C, saying "Like the first film, Rio 2 is almost oppressively bright, bombarding the screen with flashes of saturated rainforest colors and even a bird version of soccer (timed a bit too perfectly to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil)." Mike McCahill of The Guardian gave the film two out of five stars, saying "It's hard to ascribe much art or wit to a franchise that retains the services of will.i.am as comic relief – and a thoroughly inorganic talent-show subplot feels like another attempt to groom youngsters for life in the Cowell jungle." Robbie Collin of The Daily Telegraph gave the film two out of five stars, saying "This jumbled sequel, which was also directed by Carlos Saldanha, loses most of what made the first film such an infectious entertainment." Eric Henderson of Slant Magazine gave the film one out of five stars, criticizing the film and saying "Though there isn't a fruit-flavored hue that isn't jammed into every single corner of screen space in Rio 2, the movie has less actual nutritional value than 10 bowls of crushed Froot Loops dust. 20th Century Fox's sequel to the already dubious 2011 film would seem far too endlessly hyperventilating and self-stimulating a way to keep kids from barreling toward a spaz attack on a Saturday afternoon." Box office Rio 2 grossed $131,538,435 in North America, and $368,188,435 in other territories, for a worldwide total of $500,188,435, surpassing its predecessor. In North America, the film earned $12 million on its opening day, and opened to number two in its first weekend, with $39,327,869, behind Captain America: The Winter Soldier. In its second weekend, the film dropped to number three, grossing an additional $22,159,742. In its third weekend, the film dropped to number three, grossing $13,881,457. In its fourth weekend, the film dropped to number five, grossing $7,711,952. This was an embarrassing disappointment when Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment donated $100,000 to WWF to support conservation efforts in the Amazon. Accolades Possible Sequel A spokesperson for 20th Century Fox stated that they are interested in turning Rio into a franchise due to the original's gross success and critical acclaim[http://insidemovies.ew.com/2012/01/25/rio-sequel/ Fox says Rio may become a franchise due to the first film's success.]. Gallery Rio_2_promo.jpg|Early promotional poster References External links *[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2357291/ Rio 2] at the Internet Movie Database Category:Films produced by Lisa [[Category:Films scored by John Powell Category:Movies Category:Rio films Category:20th Century Fox Category:Real-D 3D Category:G-Rated films Category:Musical Category:G Category:Blue Sky Studios Category:Blue Sky Studios films Category:20th Century Fox films Category:Rio Category:Films directed by Carlos Saldanha Category:Films produced by John C. Donkin [[Category:Films produce